Set forth below is the allocation of net investment income, short- and long-term capital gains, and non-taxable return of capital for the 1998 distributions of The Gabelli Equity Trust Inc.

If there are any questions, please contact Marc Diagonale or Peter Latartara at (914) 921-5070.

$ PER SHARE   1st Qtr 2nd Qtr 3rd Qtr 4th Qtr TOTAL Percentages(d) Record Date ---- ---- 09/21/98 12/18/98     Payment Date ---- ---- 09/28/98 12/28/98     SOURCE Net Investment Income (a) $0.0000 $0.0000 $0.0311 $0.0250 $0.0560 5.51% Short-Term Capital Gains (a) $0.0000 $0.0000 $0.0000 $0.0000 $0.0000 0.00% Long-Term Capital Gains (b) $0.0000 $0.0000 $0.5328 $0.4281 $0.9610 94.49% TOTAL $0.0000 $0.0000 $0.5639 $0.4531 $1.0170 100.00%

100% of the long-term capital gains paid by the Gabelli Equity Trust in 1998 was classified as "20% Rate Gains" subject to a maximum tax rate of 20% (or 10% depending on an individual's tax bracket). Capital gain distributions are reported in box 2a of Form 1099-DIV.

U.S. GOVERNMENT INCOME:

The percentage of the ordinary income paid by the Gabelli Equity Trust in 1998 that was derived from U.S. Government Securities was 34.63%. The percentage of U.S. Government Securities held as of December 31, 1998 was 10.57%.(d)

(a)Distributions from net investment income and short-term capital gains are taxable as ordinary income and will appear on your Form 1099-DIV under Ordinary Income Distributions.
(b)Taxable as long-term capital gains, reportable in column (f), line 13 on Form 1040, Schedule D. Since there were no retained capital gains in 1997, Form 2439 will not be necessary.
(c)Non-taxable distribution of capital. The tax basis of an individual's investment should be reduced by the same amount.
(d)These percentages should be applied to each distribution made by the Trust during 1998 to determine the appropriate allocations for tax purposes.